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How To Pick A Telescope . . . / What each telescope type does best . . .

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What each telescope type does best . . .

Starting out right . . .

What does a telescope do . . .

Let’s get started . . .

What each telescope type does best . . .

Why buy a refractor . . .

Why buy a reflector . . .

Why buy a compound telescope . . .

Some final thoughts . . .

A lifetime of enjoyment . . . Keep in mind that a good telescope, whatever its type, will repay you with a lifetime of enjoyment. It can’t be used up or worn out. A poor telescope, on the other hand, will wind up unused in the back of a closet after only a few weeks of shaky and frustratingly inadequate views.

Most inexpensive department store or toy store telescopes have dim and blurry plastic optics, with shaky and difficult-to-use mounts. They can easily get you so discouraged at not seeing anything fun that you’ll give up on astronomy without ever knowing how many wonders can be seen with a real telescope.

So be prepared to spend $300 to $500 for a really good first telescope. Try to make your first purchase a quality telescope, even if you have to wait a while to buy it. You’ll be happier with a well-made telescope – from your very first look and for many years to come.

That being said, we realize that some people have strict budget limits. Others are looking only for a small scope as a present for their child or grandchild, spouse, or significant other. They are not looking for a serious observing instrument, simply a somewhat grownup version of the toy telescope they once had. They want something fun to use for an occasional peek at the Moon or planets from the patio on a warm summer’s night. For these people, we do have scopes that start at under $100 that offer very acceptable performance at very economical price points. They are fun for occasional casual peeks at the sky, but they do have their limitations. People usually enjoy astronomy more if their first scope is more than just a bare bones and undersized starter scope.

If you’re looking for a first scope priced higher than our arbitrary $499 limit, you’ll find dozens and dozens of scopes to fit your needs and your budget at our www.astronomics.com website. If you’re convinced you need a big scope for some very serious star-gazing, but your budget says “no” right now, consider joining an astronomy club and attending their star parties or using their “loaner” scope while you save up for the scope you really want. Don’t buy something that’s less than you really want, just because it’s in your price range now. If you do, sooner or later you’ll want something better, and much of your present investment can go to waste if you can’t sell the too-small scope you bought “just to get started.”

If you’ve given some thought as to what kind of celestial objects interest you the most, the following chart will give you an idea of how well each type of telescope is suited looking at those kinds of objects.

WHAT KINDS OF TELESCOPES ARE SUITABLE FOR WHAT KINDS OF OBSERVING?

Refracting
Telescopes Will the instrument be used primarily for lunar and planetary observing? Will the instrument be used primarily for deep space observing? Will the instrument be used for (1) lunar and planetary or (2) deep space photography? Will the instrument be used for terrestrial viewing during the daytime?

60mm (2.4") to
102mm (4")
altazimuth mount refractors Recommended, except can be difficult to find and manually track fast-moving objects at high powers. 60-70mm have limited capabilities. 80-102mm more suitable but still limited. (1) Lunar snapshots a possibility.
(2) Not suitable. Quite good, although field of view can be narrow.

60mm (2.4") to
127mm (5")
equatorial mount refractors Highly recommended, but best in apertures above 70mm to 80mm. 60-70mm have limited capabilities. 80mm and up are more suitable. (1) Very acceptable with motor drive.
(2) Acceptable, if 4" and larger. Usually unacceptable,
as mount is inconvenient to use.

Reflecting
Telescopes Will the instrument be used primarily for lunar and planetary observing? Will the instrument be used primarily for deep space observing? Will the instrument be used for (1) lunar and planetary or (2) deep space photography? Will the instrument be used for terrestrial viewing during the daytime?

3" to 4.5"
equatorial mount Newtonian reflectors Recommended. Acceptable, but best from dark sky sites. (1) Recommended. (2) Acceptable. Not suitable.

6" and 8"
altazimuth mount Dobsonian reflectors Acceptable, but an eyepiece filter is recommended. 8" highly recommended. (1) Not suitable.
(2) Not suitable. Not suitable.

Compound
Telescopes Will the instrument be used primarily for lunar and planetary observing? Will the instrument be used primarily for deep space observing? Will the instrument be used for (1) lunar and planetary or (2) deep space photography? Will the instrument be used for terrestrial viewing during the daytime?

3.5" Maksutov-Cassegrains Highly recommended. Acceptable, but dark skies needed for best performance. (1) Very good.
(2) Not suitable. Suitable, if can used in altazimuth mode.

Binoculars Will the instrument be used primarily for lunar and planetary observing? Will the instrument be used primarily for deep space observing? Will the instrument be used for (1) lunar and planetary or (2) deep space photography? Will the instrument be used for terrestrial viewing during the daytime?

35mm to 70mm binoculars Acceptable to good for lunar. Not suitable for planetary. Respectable performance in 50mm and larger, adequate in 42mm and below. (1) Not suitable.
(2) Not suitable. Very suitable in all sizes.

80mm and larger astronomical binoculars Acceptable to good for lunar if tripod mounted, somewhat usable for planetary in higher powers. Good performance on large scale objects. (1) Not suitable.
(2) Not suitable. Suitable, if tripod mounted.

Perhaps the chart has given you a better feel for what kind of telescope works best for the kind of observing you want to do. Maybe it looks like a refractor suits you best. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of refractors . . .

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